Kingmaker (Ace of Queens #5)

Pt.29 King of Everything

Chapter 29

Two days later

Ella would not come out of her room. No matter what happened, no matter how much Maksim sat outside her door and pleaded with her, she would not come out. And if Maksim tried to sneak in, she would scream and yell until someone came and took him out.

Owen was furious with his son. He posted guards outside Ella's door and warned Maksim not to test his patience. But of course, Maksim had yet to learn that the world did not move around him. He tried to intimidate the guards when they wouldn't let him pass. When news reached Mavi, she had Owen double the guards. The more Maksim pushed, the harder Owen and Mavi pushed back.

Ella was a raging monster as she hid out in her room. After Owen had taken Maksim out, Mavi and Rye feared she would slip into some kind of depression but the opposite happened.

Ella broke everything in the room. She shattered the mirror, tore up the sheets, ripped the pillows.....the whole room was a war zone.

Maksim listened and watched all this from the outside. The one time he did manage to slip past the guards and go inside, Ella had screamed at the top of her lungs.

"I hate you!" She yelled. "I hate you so much!"

"Ella, I love you," Maksim's eyes watered.

"You're disgusting. Leave. Now. You already took everything away from me."

"Ella, I -"

"I have nothing left for you to take from me," Ella spat. "You want my life? Take it if it'll pacify your spoiled ego."

Maksim flinched from her words. He didn't know how to make any of it better as the guards pulled him away and closed Ella's door.

But the evening of the second day, Ella's family had been informed of what happened. Layla, who had known Ruby during Ruby's time at the palace, called the family. Her intentions were pure. She wasn't aware of what the Dunbar family was like. All she wanted to do was unit a broken girl with her family.

Mavi and Owen were surprised when Dean and Ruby came to the palace. Maksim was not so pleased. He begged his parents not to let them see Ella but he was in no condition to decide anything anymore.

However, Mavi and Owen did take their son's concerns into consideration. They let the Dunbars see their daughter in the family room where Mavi, Owen, Xavier and Maksim stood outside in case she needed them.

When Clare walked Ella to the family room, she avoided Maksim at all cost. Owen asked her if she was sure she wanted to do this and Ella nodded her head.

"Ell..." Maksim tried to speak to her but Xavier's angry eyes silenced him.

Ella took a deep breath and stepped inside. At the sight of her parents, her eyes watered. She had been feeling like her world had lost all contact with the sun. Seeing her parents' familiar face broke her down and made her realize how she had nothing anymore. Truly nothing.

"Shhhh," Dean whispered as he hugged her. "Don't cry."

Ella shut her eyes and let her parents hold her like they used to when she was little. Ruby stroked her daughter's hair as Dean patted Ella's back.

"Let's go home, sweetheart," Dean said to her.

Outside, Maksim took a step forward in alarm but Owen stopped him.

"Home?" Ella asked as she looked up.

"Yes," Dean nodded. "Home. This place is not your home."

When Ella hesitated for a second, her father cupped her face and looked into her eyes.